Interior designers and builders are increasingly incorporating lighting into their designs, within and around cabinetry. In the past, furniture case goods were one of the first items to incorporate lighting. China cabinets, book shelves, or desks sometimes included a socket for a light bulb or two. Then, the furniture piece would necessarily include a cord and a plug to be connected to a wall socket.
Unlike furniture case goods, cabinetry is more often custom designed, built, and installed as an assemblage of pieces designed on a room-by-room basis. Cabinetry is also much more likely to be installed by professionals instead of homeowners. For both manufacturers and installers, cabinetry that can be built or installed more quickly can lead to cost savings.
Today's manufacturers and installers of cabinetry are limited in their ability to sell illuminated cabinets because a significant segment of customers are not willing to pay the upcharge associated with illuminated cabinets. Illuminated cabinets are traditionally more expensive than standard cabinets because of increased component and labor costs in the manufacturing and installation processes.
Therefore, there is a need for illuminated cabinets, and a system of powering those cabinets, that can help drive down costs and increase access to illuminated cabinets by simplifying the installation and manufacturing processes.